Bates Family Part 14 - Party in Pink

[Coconutwater]

I found the blog and the comment from Kelly about homeschooling. 

 

[SweetFellowshipper]

5 hours ago, Palimpsest said:

Your husband sounds like a lovely man.  I can also see where you were going with this tribute.  And to answer your last question - I think we expect very little from men who subscribe to Patriarchal thinking.  Some of them may certainly be able to "lead" the family without being complete assholes.  However, Patriarchal teaching attracts some major assholes and is a prescription for abuse, in my opinion.

That said, I do have to take serious issue with the things I bolded.  I know you said "likely not 100%" but all of them are highly unpredictable and a Fundie upbringing is certainly not going to make people miraculously immune to mental illness or weight gain.  

Quite honestly, the burden of "keeping sweet" and suppressing normal emotions in the face of the problems even the most trouble free life throws at us would have most people raging internally.  That is not good for anyone. 

As to difficult family issues and the particular form of Fundyism embraced by both Bates and Paine families.  The Recovering Grace site and the lawsuit against Gothard, IBLP/ATI, and the board of directors (including both Erin and Chad's fathers) lays out those issues quite clearly.  Goodness only knows what traumas and abuse some of these families are hiding and what the effects on the children will be later.  See the Duggars.

I agree with that--I just mean specifically Erin. In addition, I meant specifically that he wouldn't have to DEAL with it, most likely, not that it wouldn't exist. I assume that a lot of mental illness gets shoved under the rug in these communities just like the trauma, or dismissed. I should have been clearer.

[Melissa1977]

I'm not working today and it's raining so I'm bored and I've been watching Alyssa's IG and I found something funny. Some months ago we were snarking here if she was pregnant, because in all her pictures she posed with Allie covering her belly. There was a picture where the belly was not flat at all (maybe it was just the angle) and I see that Alyssa has deleted that picture. I like Alyssa despite her fundiness, but I think she must be very concerned about her body, I just hope she's not obsessed!

[Coconut Flan]

My guess is she gets very tired of the bump watch and doesn't want to have to contend with it.

[nausicaa]

21 hours ago, GreenTea said:

Tori is studying to be a teacher at Crown College of the Bible (aka Clown College), so after she graduates it makes sense that she would be a teacher at a real school (not homeschool.) Most likely a private Christian academy that has similar beliefs, but still a brick & mortar school building with many kids in classrooms.

Are there any Christian schools near the Bates family where Tori might be thinking about teaching? I don't think she would move away from home to teach at a school very far away.       

While she could end up employed full-time as a teacher, lots of fundamentalist women have gotten degrees of various credibility and then never worked full-time using that degree. I would not be surprised at all if the extent of Tori's career is to tutor younger siblings and some other kids from their church for a couple years before marrying. 

Going to Crown College is a way for Tori to meet other eligible young men, pass the time while she's a SAHD, and also provide a storyline for the series. I highly doubt she's got all that many career plans other than "marry by age 24." 

I've always gotten the feeling that most of the women at Crown are getting their MRS. I know it''s been that way at Liberty, which is far more liberal than Crown. 

[Melissa1977]

2 hours ago, nausicaa said:

While she could end up employed full-time as a teacher, lots of fundamentalist women have gotten degrees of various credibility and then never worked full-time using that degree. I would not be surprised at all if the extent of Tori's career is to tutor younger siblings and some other kids from their church for a couple years before marrying. 

Going to Crown College is a way for Tori to meet other eligible young men, pass the time while she's a SAHD, and also provide a storyline for the series. I highly doubt she's got all that many career plans other than "marry by age 24." 

I've always gotten the feeling that most of the women at Crown are getting their MRS. I know it''s been that way at Liberty, which is far more liberal than Crown. 

Very true.

Probably Kelly is more than tired of homeschooling and Tori will be useful for homeschool the little Bates. 

Yes, Bates are not against their daughters working, so maybe Tori can work in a christian school or be a kind of tutor for another fundie family. But I see Kelly convincing (forcing?) Tori to stay at home as a "teacher".

[formergothardite]

I think it also depends on what they think they need to show for their reality television story line. It would look better if they let her work for a bit before quickly marrying her off to an ATI approved man. Or she might get married right after graduating. Whatever happens, Gil and Kelly are very calculating and focused on maintaining a good image. 

@Coconutwater, IMO that comment doesn't mean that they are taking the regular tests like students who attend the school, just that they use a school as an umbrella so that they don't have to report to the local school district and then go to that school for the yearly testing. That is how it worked with most of the people I know who homeschooled using an umbrella school. I'm not 100% but I don't think it is actually a requirement by the state that they pass the end of year tests if they are enrolled in an umbrella Christian school. If TN didn't have such laws I doubt the Bates would have done it by choice. 

[19 cats and counting]

Tori is still young (she's not old enough to legally have a beer) so I don't see them pushing to marry her off anytime soon.  Although they could have dangled her in front of ATI royalty at Big Sandy.  

The next Bates kid to marry will be Nathan (Ashley).  After that, it's anyone's guess (Lawson, Tori, Trace, Carlin).  Season 4 talks about 'new love' and it very well could mean Nathan and Ashley (since their courtship was official at the end of last season).  

There was also talk of a career change in the brief description-- is Brandon being laid off?

[Kira]

1 hour ago, 19 cats and counting said:

Tori is still young (she's not old enough to legally have a beer) so I don't see them pushing to marry her off anytime soon.  Although they could have dangled her in front of ATI royalty at Big Sandy.  

The next Bates kid to marry will be Nathan (Ashley).  After that, it's anyone's guess (Lawson, Tori, Trace, Carlin).  Season 4 talks about 'new love' and it very well could mean Nathan and Ashley (since their courtship was official at the end of last season).  

There was also talk of a career change in the brief description-- is Brandon being laid off?

1. How old was Alyssa when she got married? 19? 

2. The career "change" could be Brandon and Michael moving to Texas

3.  The Season 4 promo said new loves 

[twinmama]

On 4/23/2016 at 8:48 AM, 19 cats and counting said:

The main difference I see with Chad is he clearly wants his kids.  Pre-scandal Josh showed signs (the look on his face) of just being over it all during Meredith's pregnancy and reveal.  You can tell those 2 were not on the same page when it came to Meredith.

Hehehe, child #1 versus child #4! Once Chad's wife is ridiculously stressed with 3 small children, pregnant with a 4th child, no time for cleaning or sex or a good mood, then see how much he wants numbers 4, 5, and 6.

On 4/27/2016 at 0:55 PM, GreenTea said:

Erin and Whitney could choose to send their children to Tori's school or a school like it and still say they are giving their kiddos a good, Christian education.

Curious what these Christian schools are like? My husband went to regular Catholic school from k-8, then public high school and college and grad school. His elementary education was totally normal aside from religion class and the fact that the school was so poor he had science and art/music at the public school anyway. With that base though, he was just as well educated as I was through the public school system. Are the Christian schools that the Bates or Duggars have a glimmer of a possibility of sending their kids to the same kind of thing? Or are they more in line with the fake Clown College where they only teach religion? 

[twinmama]

11 hours ago, Melissa1977 said:

I like Alyssa despite her fundiness, but I think she must be very concerned about her body, I just hope she's not obsessed!

I am relatively skinny, could not care less about body issues and thinking I'm fat etc, and if I posted a pic that wasn't really flattering I'd delete it too. Not a sign of an eating disorder or being overly into my looks, just why leave up a non-flattering pic? Times a million for someone the internet constantly speculates is pregnant!

[LaSham89]

Who is Tori's boyfriend? John said twice in the latest 'name that bates' (25th April) that she has a boyfriend. Sorry if this has already been discussed.

[nausicaa]

43 minutes ago, twinmama said:

Curious what these Christian schools are like? My husband went to regular Catholic school from k-8, then public high school and college and grad school. His elementary education was totally normal aside from religion class and the fact that the school was so poor he had science and art/music at the public school anyway. With that base though, he was just as well educated as I was through the public school system. Are the Christian schools that the Bates or Duggars have a glimmer of a possibility of sending their kids to the same kind of thing? Or are they more in line with the fake Clown College where they only teach religion? 

Can't speak for the schools around there, but where I live we have a very conservative Baptist Christian school. (No dancing, female teachers are skirts only, all teachers must sign a pledge to attend their home church every Sunday as well as Wednesday evening). I've known several people who have attended the school and they were not prepared for college and the school's college attendance rate is abysmal. The school artificially inflates the rates by counting any kid who takes any classes at the local community college.  Of my 24-year-old friend's senior class of eleven students, only one has actually completed a four year degree (at Liberty University), and he was the valedictorian of the high school. 

I know the school's highest math class barely touches pre-Calc, and the final requirement in English is to write a three page paper about how God must be real. I'm assuming the cash strapped school has even less in the way of art and music offerings. And considering I was speaking to a teacher from there once and she stated that The Scarlet Letter was absolutely inappropriate for high schoolers (even seniors), I'm gonna guess their literature exposure is pretty limited.

There are several Catholic and Protestant schools in the area that are academically rigorous, but I highly doubt an IFB family would approve of them.

Sorry for the rant. I just really hate that school...

[formergothardite]

There are some good private Christian schools around here, but IMO, the ones that use ABeka, aren't good schools. I've heard lots of complaints from parents that their kids were way behind when they either put them in public school or they started college. ABeka is just an all around bad curriculum. In one comment Kelly said something about how ABeka had really prepared Erin for Crown College and it made me wonder how low the expectations in Crown College classes are. 

 

[19 cats and counting]

Too lazy to look it up, but I would guess that a good percentage of Crown's students were homeschooled.  So I can see why a school like Crown (that might cater to them) would be easier than State U (that draws students from all walks of life).  

As for Erin being prepared for school.  Some people are more driven than others, and from what I know about Erin she's a perfectionist.  So it could be the homeschooling prepared her, but I think it's more that she was a motivated student (not all college students are) who was driven to get a 4.0 (or however they grade there) and did what it took to do so.  

Isn't there some connection between PCC and ABeka?

[samurai_sarah]

18 minutes ago, 19 cats and counting said:

Too lazy to look it up, but I would guess that a good percentage of Crown's students were homeschooled.  So I can see why a school like Crown (that might cater to them) would be easier than State U (that draws students from all walks of life).  

As for Erin being prepared for school.  Some people are more driven than others, and from what I know about Erin she's a perfectionist.  So it could be the homeschooling prepared her, but I think it's more that she was a motivated student (not all college students are) who was driven to get a 4.0 (or however they grade there) and did what it took to do so.  

Isn't there some connection between PCC and ABeka?

If I, personally, recall correctly, ABeka is put out by Bob-Jones University. From memory it's all put out by BJU Press.

[apple1]

43 minutes ago, samurai_sarah said:

If I, personally, recall correctly, ABeka is put out by Bob-Jones University. From memory it's all put out by BJU Press.

No. Abeka is affiliated with Pensacola Christian College.

[samurai_sarah]

5 minutes ago, apple1 said:

No. Abeka is affiliated with Pensacola Christian College.

You're right- faulty memory there. Thanks for correcting me.

[Snarkle]

I believe Tori was the Bates family "teacher" (helping Kelly) before she went to Crown.  As I recall, Kelly mentioned in one of the episodes that Tori was paid to help teach.  In the BUB episode "Bates Go to College," Kelly mentions that Michael, then Alyssa, then Tori helped out with teaching the younger kids.  Tori then says she decided to study teaching because she enjoyed teaching the younger kids.  Who is teaching them now - maybe Carlin?  Of course what they're being taught is important - it seems most of these curricula focus on reading, writing, and basic arithmetic with probably some (biased) history thrown in.  How much science and advanced math they get is probably questionable.

I will say that the Mueller kids seem to get a decent education.  Valerie, the oldest, is married to David Waller's brother Adam, so they are of course tangentially involved with ATI/IBLP, but Valerie's brother just graduated as an automotive mechanic from a trade school and her sister just became a CNA (nurse assistant), so they are pursuing at least some higher education in secular settings.

[TuringMachine]

This is all making me think about how I was the complete opposite when I entered college. By that I mean plenty of math and science knowledge but almost no knowledge of Christianity. In fact I had only just learned who Mary Magdalene was my senior year when our school but on Jesus Christ Superstar as the play that year. My friend pretty much had to explain everything that was going on to me.  You see my education consisted of public school and Jewish religious school, both of which intentionally left Christianity out.  Plus the town I grew up in had a very large Jewish population so there were plenty others in the same boat as me. Then I get to college where often I was the first Jewish person they ever met. People did not expect me to know so little about Christianity.

[patsymae]

Doesn't Anna Duggar also have a "degree" in education? If Tori has/is "working" toward the same "degree," I agree. It's to put lipstick on the homeschool pig.

[formergothardite]

9 hours ago, Snarkle said:

I believe Tori was the Bates family "teacher" (helping Kelly) before she went to Crown.  As I recall, Kelly mentioned in one of the episodes that Tori was paid to help teach.  In the BUB episode "Bates Go to College," Kelly mentions that Michael, then Alyssa, then Tori helped out with teaching the younger kids.

Kelly really does no parenting, does she? No wonder she struggles to list the names of her children. I am suspicious of "paying Tori", seems like something they said for show to try and make Kelly look less awful for having her children teach her children because she can't be bothered to homeschool. 

I think Anna Duggar did go to a small Christian college and study teaching. 

[nausicaa]

13 hours ago, formergothardite said:

There are some good private Christian schools around here, but IMO, the ones that use ABeka, aren't good schools. I've heard lots of complaints from parents that their kids were way behind when they either put them in public school or they started college. ABeka is just an all around bad curriculum. In one comment Kelly said something about how ABeka had really prepared Erin for Crown College and it made me wonder how low the expectations in Crown College classes are. 

 

Just checked the website of the school I was ranting about and found this, "The majority of our curriculum is from BJ Press, A Beka Books, and ACSI. Occasionally, self-directed courses for desired subjects are offered through Alpha Omega Publication LIFEPACS."

Then there's a grammatical error in the next sentence...

[formergothardite]

My mom tried LifePac once and she said it was awful! One of the worst things she has ever attempted to teach with. Kids learning history and science through A Beka and BJ are basically learning nothing. They could go outside and stare at the sky instead of taking those courses and probably come out better educated. At least they wouldn't be learning lies and propaganda. 

[tumblr]

I dated someone who went to a private IFB type school. Her family was agnostic but the school was very well known for their music program. That school was extremely lack luster and she had near zero college readiness and that was with her taking lots of time outside of school to try study up because she knew her school sucked. I think she only even had school like four hours a day or something, it was absolutely ridiculous.